On-Way Passage || ᴠᴍɪɴ

Chapter 39

"I remember," Jimin said to Taehyung.

A stunned look crossed Taehyung's face for a split second. The overhead street lights shone down on him. His thick lashes cast shadows across his face. "You remember?" he asked, echoing Jimin.

In the night air, the scent of osmanthus flowers mingling with Taehyung's pheromones was clearer.

Jimin looked him in the eyes, and suddenly thought: This is an alpha. Their bodies are capable of emitting pheromones that hold their emotions and personal mark, allowing them to convey all of their thoughts to their beloved omega without having to utter a word. But why was he, a beta, able to perceive them too?

When he was younger, he despised his unique disposition, despised the awkward status of having one foot between alphas and omegas. Yet right this second, he was a little glad—if it weren't for this special physique of his, he would never be able to perceive Taehyung's, no matter how turbulent and ferocious they were.

Right this second, Jimin couldn't decide whether he should feel regret or relief. He didn't have pheromones; the passage of feelings between him and Taehyung would always go one-way. Taehyung would never know what he was thinking if he never said anything.

Jimin smiled and said, "I remember what Xishui Hall is."

"That's all?"

"That's all."

Taehyung gazed at him, his eyes a depth of emotions. "You still don't remember me?"

Jimin earnestly mulled over this question before saying, "Actually—I can't really say I remember. I don't remember precisely what we did, but I feel that something ought to have happened here between us."

"What are you talking about?"

"I remember your pheromones, and the smell of the osmanthus flowers here." Having said that, Jimin paused briefly before continuing, "Did you fall for me under these osmanthus trees and unleash all your pheromones at me?"

Taehyung looked at him without speaking.

Jimin took two steps forward, hands behind his back, looking at the small three-storey building in front of him. "Shall we go in?"

"It doesn't look the same as it did."

Jimin turned to face him. "You've been here before?"

Taehyung didn't respond.

Jimin stood quietly for a while before asking Taehyung, "Then, should we head back?"

Taehyung raised his eyes to a second-floor window. From the outside, there was no discernible difference between this dark window and the others. "Let's go back," he said indifferently.

The driver sent them home.

Taehyung quietly stared out the window the entire way home, and Jimin could tell that he was feeling rather low. Perhaps, Taehyung had hoped that after a trip down memory lane, Jimin would be able to remember a lot more things, yet Jimin recalled nothing save for his perfume, leaving Taehyung disappointed.

When they got home, Jimin went into his room. As he was about to close the door, he noticed that Taehyung was still standing in front of it, so he pressed his face against the doorjamb and murmured, "Bye-bye?"

Taehyung turned and walked away.

Jimin closed his door and proceeded to the bathroom after collecting some nightclothes. He took a thorough shower and dressed while standing in front of the bathroom mirror. As he stared at his reflection, he took a big breath, then exited his bedroom.

He headed to Taehyung's room and directly tested out the knob without knocking. Opening the door a fraction, he poked his head inside to take a look.

The room was empty. The sound of running water came from the bathroom.

Jimin stepped inside, closed the door, then quietly made his way to the bathroom.

The bathroom door had not been shut. From outside the door, Jimin could see that Taehyung was showering in the shower cubicle with his back to the door.

Taehyung bent his head as he stood beneath the jet of water. The hot water streamed down from his head, his drenched hair clinging to his face. Drops of water splattered everywhere, and the sound seemed to drown out all other sounds. He was completely unaware that someone had sneaked i—

—right until Jimin discreetly pulled open the door of the glass cubicle and laid a hand on Taehyung's shoulder. Taehyung seized Jimin's hand and spun around to press him against the glass wall. At the same time, his other hand came up to restrain Jimin's neck.

"What are you doing?" Taehyung's initially stern expression softened significantly after seeing Jimin's face, and the hand pressing down on Jimin's neck also eased its grasp, but his tone remained icy.

The cubicle was filled with dense steam, the air thick with it. It was as if every bead of water had binded Taehyung's pheromones and amplified its scent.

Jimin, who was finding it a little hard to breathe, couldn't help but shoot a look downwards, his cheeks slightly flushed. "Let go of me first," he said.

The shower had not been turned off. The water quickly drenched most of Jimin's clothes.

Taehyung slowly released his grasp, asking once more, "What exactly are you doing here?"

"What you mentioned in the meeting room this morning," said Jimin.

Taehyung brushed away the wet locks sticking to his forehead. "What?"

Jimin averted his gaze. "Try to remember—should we continue?"

Taehyung said nothing.

Having not received an answer after such a long time, Jimin couldn't help but look at Taehyung again, only to discover that he'd been looking at him the entire time. He thus said, "I think we should continue trying, I might remember more things."

The shower cubicle was narrow. The scent of Taehyung's pheromones abruptly intensified, and the corner of his eyes, which had been incessantly pelted by the water streaming down his forehead, was tinged crimson. Throat slightly rolling, he asked, "How far do you want to 'try'?"

Jimin was suddenly a little annoyed. They'd already reached this point, why did he still have to make himself clear? "As far as we've gone before. In any case, don't lie to me."

"I lied to you?"

"Well, who knows? I don't remember anything anyway. You can say whatever you want—you can claim I ran through the streets butt naked and I won't be able to refute you. Who knows if you're setting me up little by little, purposely brainwashing me into believing that I'm a slutty beta to lure me in?"

Taehyung was silent for a moment. "And if I am? What are you going to do?"

Jimin was originally just spouting nonsense to relieve his embarrassment, and yet Taehyung's question caught him off guard. He furrowed his brows and looked up at Taehyung, "Are you that terrifying?"

Taehyung didn't say a word as he lifted a finger to gently rub Jimin's lips.

Jimin's head was a jumbled mess. For a brief moment, he recalled the fact that they still slept in different beds, and he realised that Taehyung's remark wasn't so far-fetched. When did he begin to trust Taehyung's words? It appeared to be when he heard what Yeong-su told him over lunch. But what if Yeong-su was someone Taehyung had deliberately placed at Jimin's side in order to deceive him? Jimin suddenly shivered.

As his train of thinking veered further off course, Taehyung planted a firm kiss to his lips, overturning his endless thoughts.

Jimin could only breathe as much oxygen as he could in the small, steam-filled space by taking huge gulps of air. He instinctively lifted his arms and circled them around Taehyung's shoulders, feeling the solid and powerful muscles. He shivered from the simultaneous intimate contact of their lips and bodies.

Shit! Jimin thought to himself. Screw it all. He'll just have a good time first and worry about the rest afterwards.